First Win

When two teams play that have not won a game yet, one of the teams will walk off the field in a good mood. Last Saturday afternoon, that team was St. Anselm as they held on to defeat American International 29-21.

It was the tale of two halves for the Hawks. After falling behind 14-3, they scored 26 straight to take a commanding lead into the locker room at halftime. Senior quarterback Eric Fairweather was magical in the run as he was distributing the ball to nine different receivers and helped St. Anselm to 370 yards of offense in the opening 30 minutes.

"Eric has worked really hard on the things that we didn't do very well last year," St. Anselm head coach Joe Adam said. "His work ethic in the offseason has really shown. He is the catalyst and the sky's the limit as we get continue to garner weapons around him."

But the offense was stymied in the second half and gained a grand total of 36 yards. Their solid work in the first half was enough to hold off the Yellow Jackets but with such a young team, the Hawks need to learn to play 60 minutes to be competitive week in and week out in the league.

"Hats off to them," Adam said of American International. "They are well coached on defense. We got out of rhythm and we will go back to look at the film and see some opportunities that were missed."

It was the defense that helped the Hawks settle down. After allowing touchdowns on two of the first three drives, they settled in and got stops. CJ Miller and Zack Mercer were the leading tacklers including several in the backfield.


"We have been banged up and a lot of things going against us right now," Adam continued. "We are playing a lot of young guys and finding a way to finish. That is the thing that I am most proud of. We didn't finish against Stonehill and we didn't do our job last week. I am proud of how they responded."

St. Anselm will look to end the first half of the season with another win as they travel to Southern Connecticut.

Opportunity Knocks

Assumption defeated Pace 49-21 last Friday night despite being outgained in total offense. But the Greyhounds took advantage of their opportunities and punched the ball into the end zone when they had the chance.

Short fields and penalties went Assumption's way and the offense clicked for the third straight game. Cody Williams and Doug Santos had a hand in all of the scores as Santos had three rushing scores and Williams threw for three and rushed for another.
The game was tied at 14 early in the second quarter but the Greyhounds scored the next 21 points to take control of the game.

It was the defense of the Greyhounds that had a bend but not break attitude in the game. They allowed 324 yards of rushing to Pace but tightened up when the Setters were inside of the 30-yard line. The defense made a couple of interceptions late in the game when Pace was trying to stretch to field to cut the deficit.

Since the first half of the Kutztown game, it is the team that the Greyhounds expected to be this year and they are rolling with three straight victories.

Assumption will host American International next Saturday.

Top Passing Duo

New Haven has the most experienced quarterback in the league and have surrounded him with some additional receivers that he is finding with regularity. The Chargers traveled north and took care of business in their 44-18 victory at Merrimack. They are now 3-1 overall and 3-0 in the NE-10.

Ajee Patterson completed 19 of 27 throws for 316 yards and four scores. Nine of those completions and three touchdowns went to his new favorite receiver Ju'An Williams. The duo is lighting up the league and no secondary has been able to contain them yet.

As Patterson is throwing the ball down the field, the running backs are excelling. Chris Liggio and Ryan McCarthy also found the end zone once apiece and averaged nearly five yards per touch.

Let's also not forget about the Charger defense. They have not allowed more than 20 points in their first three league games and Jordan Francklin is making plays all over the field.

The next challenge for New Haven will be when they host Bentley this weekend.

Run with Me

Southern Connecticut had been solid in the running game this year and it was the catalyst in their 42-21 victory over Stonehill last Saturday night. They had 296 yards on the ground and broke off a bunch of big runs.

Eli Parks was the workhorse once again as he carried the ball 31 times for 140 yards. His fellow backfield mate, Vochan Fowler had 96 yards in the game and broke off a 53-yard touchdown scamper in the fourth quarter.

The Owls also saw their backup quarterback Matt Sapere make a solid collegiate debut as he completed 68% of his passes and threw for three scores.

The defense also got into the scoring column as Kyle Smith was credited with the sack and the fumble. Jhaaron Wallace cleaned up the play as he recovered the ball in the end zone for the score.

Southern Connecticut will entertain St. Anselm this Saturday.

Defense RulesBackup Quarterbacks

Football seasons are long, and injuries happen to all teams. When you are the backup, you need to be ready at any point. That is true for quarterbacks as they can be signaling plays one minute and taking the snap the next.

A guy like Carlton Aiken of Pace has seized the opportunity to play. He has played the past two weeks in place of Brandon Simmons and has gotten more comfortable each week. He did see some plays in the first couple of games but has excelled since he saw all of the plays for the Pace offense.

He is a dual threat and keeps the defense on their heels as he can throw the ball deep or break off a 30-yard run. He played well against Assumption and a reason why Pace has turned around their fortunes.

Or look at Matt Sapere of Southern Connecticut. He steps in to help the Owls win their first league game of the season and tosses three scores.

Or Prince Olubakinda of American International. He might have earned the starting job as he threw touchdowns on two of his first three throws. He has the arm to throw the deep ball but will need to improve with the accuracy of the short passes.

And let's not forget the play of Seamus Leary in Week 2. He rallied Bentley to their lone league victory as he came off the bench in the second half and led the Falcons to 24 points.

If you are standing on the sideline, please make sure that you are ready when the coach calls you. Make the most of your opportunity and you will have a spot for the rest of the season.